In the new film, Mother and Child, actress Kerry Washington plays Lucy, a woman who longs to adopt a child with her husband.

During the infant stages of the adoption process, however, Washington’s character realizes the road to adoption will not be easy.

The film is about three women: Lucy (Kerry Washington), Karen (Annette Bening) and Elizabeth (Naomi Watts), all of whom have been profoundly affected by adoption, all in very different ways. Mother and Child, directed by Rodrigo Garcia, also stars Samuel L. Jackson, Jimmy Smits and David Ramsey.

Washington sat down with the Today Show’s Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee Gifford to discuss the film and its premise.

“It’s a film about women and our unique journeys,” said Washington. “It’s about the one thing that we all have in common which is having a mother. We all know that dynamic.”

WATCH TODAY SHOW COVERAGE OF KERRY WASHINGTON IN ‘MOTHER AND CHILD’

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Although Washington is not a mother herself, she admits the experience of playing a longing one brought her closer to her own mom.

“It was really a bonding experience for my mom and I because she actually spent several years conceiving me, and I went to her to ask what that time was like for her,” said Washington.